TheDerb
Well-Known Member
- First Name
- Mike
- Joined
- May 26, 2022
- Threads
- 43
- Messages
- 322
- Reaction score
- 771
- Location
- Murfreesboro, TN
- Vehicle(s)
- 1984 CJ-7, 2025 Ford Maverick Hybrid XL.
- Thread starter
- #1
I am showing a buddy how to off-road in a manual in my truck.
My buddy and I spent a total of 15 minutes "off road" yesterday. We made it to the little spot I wanted to go to, and while the driving wasn't as smooth as it could have been, he practiced getting it in 4 wheel drive, and for about 30 second it was in 4 low, 1st Gear, RPM never exceeding 2k. In 4 wheel drive, there was definitely some clutch riding going on because he couldn't find the bite, but nothing that I am concerned about as it was probably 5 minutes total with intermittent clutch riding. I'd equate it to no worse than "beginner stop and go traffic" type manual driving.
He got uncomfortable, so I got in the drivers seat. The opening we were in narrowed down, so while in 2 wheel drive I began a multi point turn, and it turned to mud, so I backed up enough to get out, and in order to back up I had to give it a bit of gas. I completed one more forward, then a second backward adjustment to get pointed in the right direction. Then I got the dreaded "Clutch hot warning- release the clutch and let it cool down" message. Well, I was not willing to get stuck in the mud, so I put it in 4HI, clutched on more time to get back into 2Hi, and we left the area, with minimal clutch use on a 2WD easy exit out of the area.
2 minutes later, the warning was gone.
I then got to thinking perhaps the clutch was being ridden the whole time he was driving, and he said he didn't think so- he had his foot near the clutch, but the clutch was "fully let out" when he was advancing/driving. I know this isn't ideal, and while it should be avoided, that short amount of time isn't really going to hurt anything.
A few key points- we never smelled clutch burning. I think outside of a grand total of 30 seconds combined of "riding the clutch", it was actually a pretty easy ride.
So the big question is (and obviously just assuming everything I said here is accurate), is there an actual temp sensor on the clutch? Or did I just create some sort of pattern that would indicate that I was reasonably going to damage the clutch if I kept on doing the same thing I was doing prior to the warning popping up. And the supplemental big question is "what is the likelihood that had I not reversed (which is not a fun thing to do even on flat ground in this truck) I would have seen that message?"
Any thoughts on this would be welcome.
My buddy and I spent a total of 15 minutes "off road" yesterday. We made it to the little spot I wanted to go to, and while the driving wasn't as smooth as it could have been, he practiced getting it in 4 wheel drive, and for about 30 second it was in 4 low, 1st Gear, RPM never exceeding 2k. In 4 wheel drive, there was definitely some clutch riding going on because he couldn't find the bite, but nothing that I am concerned about as it was probably 5 minutes total with intermittent clutch riding. I'd equate it to no worse than "beginner stop and go traffic" type manual driving.
He got uncomfortable, so I got in the drivers seat. The opening we were in narrowed down, so while in 2 wheel drive I began a multi point turn, and it turned to mud, so I backed up enough to get out, and in order to back up I had to give it a bit of gas. I completed one more forward, then a second backward adjustment to get pointed in the right direction. Then I got the dreaded "Clutch hot warning- release the clutch and let it cool down" message. Well, I was not willing to get stuck in the mud, so I put it in 4HI, clutched on more time to get back into 2Hi, and we left the area, with minimal clutch use on a 2WD easy exit out of the area.
2 minutes later, the warning was gone.
I then got to thinking perhaps the clutch was being ridden the whole time he was driving, and he said he didn't think so- he had his foot near the clutch, but the clutch was "fully let out" when he was advancing/driving. I know this isn't ideal, and while it should be avoided, that short amount of time isn't really going to hurt anything.
A few key points- we never smelled clutch burning. I think outside of a grand total of 30 seconds combined of "riding the clutch", it was actually a pretty easy ride.
So the big question is (and obviously just assuming everything I said here is accurate), is there an actual temp sensor on the clutch? Or did I just create some sort of pattern that would indicate that I was reasonably going to damage the clutch if I kept on doing the same thing I was doing prior to the warning popping up. And the supplemental big question is "what is the likelihood that had I not reversed (which is not a fun thing to do even on flat ground in this truck) I would have seen that message?"
Any thoughts on this would be welcome.
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